Sir, - "And some have greatness thrust upon them." Hugh Linehan, reviewing The Fan (Irish Times, November 8th), describes Robert de Niro as the greatest movie actor of his generation. He illustrates this by telling us that de Niro "seems to be descending more and more into self-parody these days", and that his latest offering is "a woefully weak copy of his previous performances".
In view of this, is it not time to pass "the greatest" title to another? Harvey Keitel and Ala Pacino must surely be serious contenders. - Yours, etc.,
Sweetmount Drive, Dublin 14.